Fools' Paradise (lost?)
Environments & Ecologies
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1h 38m
Directed by Alexandra Lexton • Documentary • 2024 • 98 minutes
A filmmaker who late in life acquired an organic apple farm, Alexandra Lexton found herself searching for “stories of others who’d reconnected with nature in different ways, then brought their experiences in some meaningful way into the world.”
Fools’ Paradise (lost?) finds Lexton eliciting wisdom from 10 such interviewees, including a globetrotting photographer, a journalist, a Navajo scholar, an ecotherapist, famed “planetwalker” Dr. John Francis, and experts in mindfulness and climate change. Immersed in their experiences, Fools' Paradise (lost?) delves into topics such as personal action, sustainable business and life practices, nature therapies and how we need and use nature to regenerate ourselves. What can different cultures and histories offer us as lessons for our future? What are some of our most prominent thinkers and creators doing to make change within themselves and beyond? How can we tap into those lessons and experiences both as individuals and communities?
Alongside this exploration, Lexton addresses the reality that we must heal what is left of our planet. In a time when climate change and environmental degradation pose dire consequences for both humanity and the planet, revealing pathways for healing through our reconnection to the natural world can help us learn to care for it – and if the Earth benefits, we will all benefit.
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